Dev. Journal: trepid_jon (2008-06-29)

[FF_Team]

You're craz-you're crazy, man. You're crazy! I like you...but you're crazy.

Last week, I started converting FF's source code to the Orange Box code. It was an insane task, to say the least. First of all, nobody else wanted to do it. I mean, everyone wants FF to use the latest version of Source, but nobody wanted to do this psychotic conversion that Valve has forced on all the old mods. Granted, a mod would have an easy integration if it didn't modify any base files, using nothing but brand new files specifically created for that particular mod. FF's not like that, though. Yeah, FF's code uses a lot of unique files, but we also did a lot of base modifications. Luckily most of those modifications were commented well, and now even more of that is better commented and separated from the base stuff.

1 week, thousands of differing files, and hundreds of compile errors later, FF can now be played with the Orange Box engine. OOOoooOOOhhh!!! There are quite a few bugs to work out, however, so 2.1 won't be using this code unless we fix all the major bugs within a couple weeks.

After getting past the initial problems of FF crashing immediately upon startup, during map load, and lots of other similar spots, I finally got into the game...but I couldn't pick a team or class, and therefore couldn't spawn. I could go into thirdperson, though...

Wow, right? That's so Orange Box.

The first thing I noticed was this...THING...on the left. Said something about "Server" blah blah, like I cared. I later confirmed it's the chat window. Well, part of it. It's this little spot/coffin where all the received chat messages go to hang out forever. It's basically the worst thing imaginable.

Anyways, I couldn't move or look around in firstperson, but I could look around in thirdperson (as a side note, Valve greatly improved thirdperson mode with a moving camera that has collision, among other cool things). So once I could move the camera around, the next thing I noticed was that awesome Orange Box motion blur effect...

This is called a town. It's where everyone hates you and makes fun of you.

The problem with picking a team and class had to do with the way the new code handles console commands. FF has a special way of making some console commands, and most of the console commands use this special method (team, class, +gren1, dispenser, cloak, etc...pretty much everything you do in FF that's directly related to FF). Long story short, I fixed that crap and some other crap dealing with different crap and was then able to look, run, shoot, and do all that other minor stuff FF needs to be considered a game.

WARNING: if you don't like motion blur, you'll hate every single one of these screenshots, because I was literally shaking the mouse to make all of them blurry, haha...



In the Orange Box engine, your flashlight casts dynamic shadows off objects.
(including yourself when you're in thirdperson)



In 2.1, hunted's dirt hole is a vent (finally).


Blur slideshow, WOOH!


Apparently the flamethrower's particles aren't drawing.
Just another reason to revamp FF's effects using the new particle system.
It will be so nice.




More blurry 2.1 hunted.


Some blurry 2.1 cz2 as well.



I don't know if redux wants this seen yet, but it's blurry...so nobody's really seeing it.


2.1 has swim animations, y'all!

So by having FF use the Orange Box engine, we get motion blur.

The other new things like vgui videos, the new version of Hammer (lighting preview, what?), the new particle system, the material and commentary editors, steam avatars, and so forth...all of them mean nothing in comparison to the greatness that is motion blur.

r.

[GeoKill----->]

heheh Nice

[Mad_Clog]

best news in a long time!

[reaper18]

awsome, we need vids!
And not just of you standing there shaking the damn mouse and making it blurry -_-

[Bully]

Great news

ff_bases FTW

[a082]

Nice!!!!

[UnRated]

Wondeful news The graphical effects can be improved even more. Oh forgot to mention..........

MOTION BLUR FTW!!!

[DarkieJ]

startup video would be really awesome! And now i dont have the orange box for nothing!

[Peon]

Looks great...thanks for the preview.

[פֿяαιп βαмαgεפ]

<3 Motion blur!

[shadow]

so will we need to recompile the maps to match some new map version ID?
or maybe to take advantage of some new lighting algorithm?

[Gator-]

the motion blur is sickening

[Desyphur]

I don't even know if I'll get half of that

My comp doesn't render dynamic shadows, nor has motion blur worked in any of my orange box games...

[Pixel]

my head hurts from looking at those shots.

[Nuk3m]

Yeah people we're goin to OB! I didnt know you guys were gonna do the news in a dev journal, still its epic win.

[bokko]

Le good job! Not a big fan of the motion blur effect (although it is probably exaggerated in those screenshots), but it is always nice to hear progress is being made and seeing actual proof of that. The guy who's finishing up on bases should definately make a dev journal post.

[GeoKill----->]

Redux should

[trepid_jon]

yes, he definitely should, cause bases is a great map

And yeah, the motion blur is highly exaggerated in those screenshots. As you may know from playing Orange Box games, it's much more subtle when you play normally. It's awesome stuff.

I mainly just wanted to hint at the hunted and cz2 changes that'll be in 2.1...and I guess sort-of-but-not-completely show bases since it was one of the maps I loaded to test out this Orange Box stuff (while talking to redux through Steam Friends, by the way...which actually made the game crash at first, cause you know how you hit shift+tab to bring up the in-game Steam shit? haha, well tab also brings up the scoreboard, and the scoreboard is crashing Orange Box FF).

And shadow, I don't think you need to do anything. Older maps play fine. But of course it wouldn't hurt to compile with the new tools once FF is officially using the Orange Box engine.

[GeoKill----->]

hdr you say?

[Nuk3m]

So the shadows are fixed? no more 90 degree shadows?